Barwa’s Qatar, Abu Dhabi’s Dana Gas jump on deal announcements

Developer Barwa Real Estate helped lift Qatar’s bourse on Wednesday after announcing a land sale deal with the government, while Abu Dhabi’s Dana Gas rose after signing a new contract in Egypt.

Qatar’s benchmark rose 0.2 percent as shares in Barwa jumped 3.5 percent and were among the main supports.

Barwa said on Wednesday it would sell land worth 2.54 billion riyals ($697.4 million) to the government, the latest state assistance which the indebted developer has received.

The sale will have a positive impact on the company’s financials, it said, although Barwa did not specify when this would be.

Abu Dhabi’s index rose 0.5 percent heavyweight Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank climbed 1.5 percent.

Shares in energy firm Dana Gas gained 2.9 percent after it announced a deal with Egypt that would help it to recover most of the $280 million it is owed by the Cairo government.

Political turmoil and violence since the 2011 revolt that ousted Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak has hit the economy hard, and Egypt has struggled to pay foreign companies for gas, with some major gas projects grinding to a halt at a time when generous state subsidies are stoking demand.

Dana says it is owed $280 million in outstanding payments but that a new Gas Production Enhancement Agreement (GPEA) will permit it to drill 37 new wells and redevelop existing ones, providing additional condensate production that it can sell on the international market.

Dubai’s index was flat in low-volume trading as the market prepared for the listing of Emaar Malls Group on Thursday following a $1.58 billion initial public offer.

SAUDI, EGYPT

Saudi Arabia’s bourse slipped 0.05 percent as trading volume fell ahead of the long break for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.

Markets in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman will close for the whole week starting Oct. 5 and trading will resume on Oct. 12, according to exchanges and regulators.

Stock exchanges in Bahrain and Egypt will be closed between Oct. 5 and Oct. 7 inclusive, while markets in the United Arab Emirates will shut down for Oct. 5 and Oct. 6.

The Cairo index pulled back 0.7 percent after hitting a fresh six-year closing high of 9,811 points on Tuesday. Developer SODIC was one of the main drags, dropping 6.3 percent after surging 19 percent in the previous two sessions.

Shares in Orascom Telecom Media and Technology fell 1.7 percent after its chief executive Karim Beshara resigned his position and was replaced by Ahmed Abou Doma effective Wednesday.